Date: Wed, 25 Apr 2007 10:18:05 -0400 From: Doug Lee <dgl@dlee.org> To: freebsd-questions@freebsd.org Subject: USB console or other alternatives Message-ID: <20070425141804.GC911@kirk.dlee.org>
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I'm one of these guys running FreeBSD 4.11 on very old hardware (a Pentium 166, specifically), and I want to upgrade to FreeBSD 6 or 7 soon but with new hardware. Being blind, I need to use something other than the video card for a console. I've been using a serial console for a long time, but serial ports are getting scarce. I need the console to become active during the boot sequence in case of problems, as it can with a serial console. As I did with FreeBSD 3 and 4, I will also want to activate this console during FreeBSD installation if possible, so I don't have to have someone else be here when I install it. Can modern hardware and a modern FreeBSD version provide console access before the kernel loads via USB or via anything other than an actual on-board or PCI serial port? Please Cc answers. Thanks very much for any info. -- Doug Lee dgl@dlee.org SSB + BART Group doug.lee@ssbbartgroup.com http://www.ssbbartgroup.com "Innovation is hard to schedule." -- Dan Fylstra
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